streets tonight have been a place of celebration for the life of nelson mandela. much more on that in a few moments. >>> but our top story tonight comes from california, where an 85-year-old american man is home after a seven-week ordeal as a prisoner in north korea. the end of a tense standoff came suddenly, the north korean government saying merrill newman, a korean war vet with a heart condition was released for humanitarian reasons. nbc's mike taibbi is in palo alto with more porous. good evening. >> reporter: good evening, lester. the north korean officers say they deported merrill newman, others say he was freed after a detention that never should have happened. the ex-marine for a trip that lasted much longer than it should have is home. it happened quickly without any prior announcement, the flight from pyongyang to beijing, and merrill newman finally able to speak freely >> i'm very glad to be on my way home. >> reporter: and then after a direct flight to san francisco, american soil. >> it's been a great, great homecoming and i'm tired, but ready to be w